I loved the Springsteen half-time show. He’s 59. An inspiration — if he has that much energy, I can have it, even if I’ve got a few years on him.
And many people might have said that rock like that was dead, as any kind of current music. That it’s now nostalgia. But maybe not. Or maybe nostalgia is part of its strength, a way of bringing back our innocence.
A great way to launch the new album, of course. The new song stood up to the classics (though since everything was cut, we don’t know how it would hold up at full length). Also — how happy to do a show like that with your wife in the band.
But what I loved most — besides the sheer rock & roll energy, and the double shot of nostalgia and current force — was the Obama subtext. Bruce turned down the Super Bowl before this. But then Obama won, and we know Bruce feels renewed by that, that he can once again sign on to where America is going. So now, just maybe, he agrees to do the Super Bowl, because now he’s thrilled to sign on to a mainstream American event.
And look at the last two song titles — “Working on a Dream” and “Glory Days.” The Obama era. When your guy is president, the Super Bowl doesn’t seem so empty anymore.
(I also sent these thoughts out with Twitter, in four quick tweets. Go here if you want to follow me.)
Makes sense to me!